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PLEASE    C.IRCULATE. 
II  E  M  A  R  K  S 


MR.  TRUMAN  SMITH,  OF  CONN., 

ON 

THE  IMPUTATIONS  OF  N.  B.  BLUNT,  ESQ.,  OF  THE  CITY  OF  NEW  YORK,  ON  HIS 
COURSE  AS  A  DELEGATE  TO  THE  RECENT 

WHIG  NATIONAL  CONVENTION, 


TOGETHER 


Wit't  an  <  xposit.du  of  the  Leitffits  which,  will  result  to  the  Country  from 

the  c'cvalion  of 

GEN.  ZACHARY  TAYLOR 

TO    THE 

p :i E s  i  r> E >:  c  v  OF  THE  i; N i  r ED  STATES. 


TO    THE    PUBLIC. 


I  perceive  from  a  report  in  some  (f  the  New  York  papers  of  the  proceedings  of  a 
meeting  of  the  Whigs  of  that  city,  ex  uveae.i  in  the  Park,  on  the  16th  instant,  N.  B. 
Blunt,  esq.,  (one  of  the  delegates  (o  tlvj  recent  Convention  at  Philadelphia,)  took 
the  liberty  of  introducing  my  humble  name  to  the  consideration  of  the  meeting,  ac- 
companied with  the  imputation  of  a  want  of  fidelity  on  rny  part,  as  a  member  of  the 
same  Convention,  to  the  trust  reposed  in  me  hv  the  Whigs  of  Connecticut.  In  one 
of  the  papers  alluded  to,  Air.  Blunt  is  reported  as  follows  :  "  Look  at  your  sister  of 
Connecticut.  One  of  her  delegates,  who  has  filled  high  office  in  her  gift,  and  who 
.  is  about  to  enter  upon  a  still  more  exalted  po.-iiion  before  the  nation,  was  elected 
and  instructed  lo  cast  Ais  rote  for  Hci.ry  C/ai/.  He  came  into  that  Convention  with 
the  name  of  Henry  Clay  on  his  lips,  but  with  ail  his  energies  predetermined  to  de- 
(  feat  him.  This,  fellow  citizens,  wa.s  his  conduct,  and  though  I  have  no  personal 
•  injuries  to  redress,  I  feel  that  1  have  u  right  *  to  hold  the  mirror  up  to  nature '  to- 
say  whether  this,  man  deserves  well  at  the  hands  of  his  constituent-;.''  It  has  ever 
been  with  me  a  rule  not  to  take  any  notice  of  scandal  or  abuse  from  whatever  quar- 
ter it  may  com<>,  as- 1  am  of  the  opinion,  that  a  public  man  had  better  live  down  all 
su:h  attacks,  and  if  he  has  not  character  enough  to  do  so,  he  should  seek  immunity 
therefrom,  in  retirement  and  obscurity.  If  I  make  the  present  case  an  exception  to 
that  rule,  it  will  not  be  on  personal  grounds — it  wiii  not  be  because  I  have  the 
siightost  idea  that,  there  is  any  occasion  to  vindicate  myself  before  tin*  Whigs  of 
Connecticut,  but  becau.-c  such  charges  tend  to  brin;j;  the  Convention  itself'into 
"pute,  the  proceedings  of  which  were.,  as  1  think,  characterized  throughout  by 
a  spirit  of  fairness,  moderation,  impartialitv,  and  rectiiude.  I  have  not  the  honor 
<-'*  a  personal  'acquaintance  with  Mr.  Blunt,  but  I  am  free  to  confess,  that  all  I  have 
learned  of  his  standing  as  aa  eminent  lawyer.  a:id  of  his  character  as  a  good  reliable 
Whig,  has  been  adapted  to  inspire  me  with  respect.  1  d-:»  ir>t  therefore  desire, 
and  shall  not  enter  into  any  controversy  with  him;  .intent  invself  with 

J    i  G.*.C   Ic^ipni-te-s. 


stating  plainly  the  facts  of  the  case,  and  shall  leave  him  to  repent  at  his  leisure  of 
the  injustice  which  he  has  done  to  a  fellow  member  of  the  Convention,  who  claims 
no  other  position  than  that  of  being  bis  equal,  with  the  right  to  consult  his  own 
sense  of  duty,  and  to  be  guided  by  his  own  convictions  of  what  (in  the  very  diffi- 
cult and  trying  circumstances  in  which  the  Convention  was  placed)  was  best 
adapted  to  promote  the  good  of  the  country  and  the  success  of  the  Whig  party.  In 
answer  to  the  unceremonious  and  unwarrantable  use  which  has  been  made  of  my 
name,  and  to  imputations  from  whatever  quarter  they  may  come,  I  submit  the  fol-* 
lowing  remarks  : 

1.  It  is  not  true,  as  alleged  by  Mr.  Blunt,  that  I  was  elected  to  the  Convention 
and  instructed  to  vote  for  Henry  Clay ;  I  was  a  member  of  the  State  Convention 
which  convened  in  New  Haven  last  fall,  and  which  appointed  the  delegation  to  the 
National  Convention,  consisting  of  Messrs.  Rockwell,  Stuart,  Babcock,  Trumbull, 
White,  and  myself,  and  no  instructions  whatever  were  given  to  the  delegation.     It 
is  not  the  practice  of  the  Whigs  of  Connecticut  to  commit  their  delegates  in  ad- 
vance ;  but  it  is,  and  ever  has  been,  expected  and  desired  that  they  should  go  into 
the  National  Convention  untrammelled  and  prepared  to  enter  into  a  full  and  free 
consultation  with  their  brethren  from  other  sections  of  the  Union,  and  then  do  what 
they  shall  think  just  and  right  under  all  the  circumstances  of  the  case.     Such  is  my 
sense  of  the  evils  of  a  packed  convention,  I  would  not  accept  of  a  seat  in  such  a 
body  instructed  to  vote  for  any  man. 

2.  It  is  not  true  that  I  went  into  the  Convention  with  the  name  of  "  Henry  Clay 
on  my  lips,  but  with  all  my  energies  pre-determined  to  defeat  him."     On  the  con- 
trary, I  was  well  assured,  from  all  I  knew  of  the  composition  of  that  body,  that  he 
would  in  no  event  get  a  nomination.     I  was,  in  fact,  desirous  that  he  should  receive 
as  large   a  vote  as  possible  as  an  expression  of  the  high  appreciation  of  his  talents 
and  public  services  which  all  good  Whigs  entertain,  and  as  an  alleviation  in  some 
degree  of  a  result  adverse  to  his  claims  which  I  considered  inevitable.     I  even  now 
regret  that  the  Kentucky  delegation  did  not  feel  it  to  be  their  duty  to  cast  a 
unanimous  vote  in  his  favor,  for  reasons  that  must  be  obvious.     But  "  all  my  ener- 
gies were  pre-determined  "  to  ensure  the  nomination  of  Gen.  Taylor,  as  between 
him  and  some  other  candidates,  not  because  I  did  not  entertain  the  utmost  respect 
for  such   candidates,  but  sim'ply  because  I  thought  we  should  best  subserve  the  in- 
terests of  the  country-by  putting  forward,  in  the  present  conjuncture,  the  name  of 
Gen.  Taylor.     When  I  speak  of  other  candidates,  I  must  not  be  understood  to  refer 
to  Mr.  Webster,  of  whom,  permit  me  to  say,  that  the  people  of  the  U.  States  would 
have  honored  themselves,  and  have  rendered  our  free  institutions  illustrious,  if  they 
had  made  him  President  long  ago.     It  is  true  the  name  of  Henry  Clay  has  often  been 
on  my  lips,  but  it  has  ever  been  in  accents  of  praise  and  admiration ;  such  was  the 
fact  in   1844,  when  I  devoted  almost  an  entire  year  in  co-operation  with  friends  to 
rescuing  our  Commonwealth  from  the  hands  of  the  opponent,  and  in  giving  him 
the  electoral  vote  of  Connecticut.     I  claim  to  be  a  much  truer  friend  of  Mr.  Clay 
than  those  who  have  so  unadvisedly  urged  him  into  the  field  when  there  was  little 
probability  that  he  could  be  nominated,  and  less  that  he  could  be  elected  if  nominated. 

3.  It  is  well  known  here,  and  I  believe  throughout  Connecticut,  that  having  given 
the  entire  subject  a  full  and  most  anxious  consideration,  I  early'  in  the  present  ses- 
sion came  to  the  conclusion  that  We  could  with  more  certainty  put  down  the  present 
Administration,  and  promote  the  success  of  the  Whig  cause,  under  the  auspices  of 
Gen.  Taylor,  than  by  using  the  name  of  any  other  of  the  distinguished  men  who 
have  been  brought  before  the  public  in  this  connection.     Nevertheless,  I  have  said 
on  all  occasions  that  I  would  not,  as  a  delegate  to  the  Convention,  act  on  my  own 
private  opinions,  but  would  co-operate  with  the  other  delegates  from  Connecticut  in 
an  effort  to  obtain  such  a  result  as  we  might,  on  consultation,  deem  to  be  best. 

4.  When  the  delegation  assembled  at  Philadelphia  for  consultation,  in  advance  of 
the  deliberations  of  the   Convention,  my  opinions    favorable  to  General  Taylor, 
and  the  grounds  on  which  those  opinions  are  based,  were  fully  stated  to  my  co-dele- 
gates ',  but,  at  the'  same  time,  I  avowed  the  purpose  of  abiding  by  the  decision  of 


hat  determination  one 
L  us,  so  as  to  give  Mr. 
ave  been  the  nominee 
844,  to  make  him  the 

by  far,  than  I  antici- 
assembled  the  next 
t  many  delegates  who 
or  other  candidates  on 
.e,  we  decided  unani- 
as  he  should  be  con- 
the  first  time,  to  my 
and  myself  supported 
•  acted  on  their  own 
I  presume  I  shall  not 
would  have  received, 
tion,)  two  more  votes 
delegates  from  other 


Whigs  of  the  city  of 
nvention  not  as  their 
I  thought  myself  a 
;rfectly  free  National 
ourtesy  and  respect. 
t  a  reasonable  being, 
vith  liberty  to  exer- 
accomplish  an  object 
which  I  pursued  by 
'  I  shall  pursue  "the 
ition,  from  whatever 
not  at  all  apprehen- 
ly  own  constituents, 
i  to  believe  that  he 
on  as  fearlessly  did 
of  those  who  have 
>ect  Mr.  Blunt.     As 
»  them.     I  have  re- 
tly  one  which  nearly 
ounts  between  our- 
3ver  it  shall  appear 
nto  their  hands  any 
he  misconstructions 
he  repose  of  private 
n  Whigs  of  the  city 

i  traducing  the  con- 

ui  uitiei1  pans. 01  UiU  CUUlllty,  llle^  WollkMUlve  more  influence  in 
giving  a  direction  to  public  affairs. 

From  this  exposition,  I  think,  it  is  manifest  that  Mr.  Blunt,  "in  holding  the  mir- 
ror up  to  nature,"  has  placed  it  in  false  lights,  and  has  reflected  a  distorted  image; 
and,  in  view  of  the  facts  stated,  I  fearlessly  submit  my  course  in  the  Convention  to 
the  scrutiny  of  all  honorable  and  upright  men.  I  have  acted  openly  and  above 
board  on  all  occasions  in  reference  to  this  subject,  and  avoiding  ultraism  and  vio- 
lence, on  the  one  hand,  I  hope  my  conduct,  on  the  other,  has  been  characterized  by 
the  independence  and  firmness  which  all  should  possess  who  desire  to  be  of  any  use 
to  the  country. 

Dismissing,  then,  this  subject,  which  I  shall  not  be  surprised  to  find  regarded  as 


stating  plainly  the  facts  of  the  case,  and  shall  leave  him  to  repent  at  his  leisure  of 

the  injustice  which  " 

no  other  position  t 

sense  of  duty,  and 

cult   and   trying  cii 

adapted  to  promote 

answer  to  the  uncer 

name,  and  to  impul 

lowing  remarks  : 

1.  It  is  not  true, 
and  instructed  to  v 
which  convened  in 
National  Conventioi 
White,  and  myself, 
is  not  the  practice 
vance  ;  but  it  is,  ar 
the  National  Convc 
consultation  with  th 
they  shall  think  just 
sense  of  the  evils  • 
body  instructed  to  v 

2.  It  is  not  true  t 
on  my  lips,  but  wit? 
trary,  I  was  well  as: 
would  in  no  event  g 
as  large  a  vote  as 
and  public  services 
degree  of  a  result  a( 
regret  that  the  Ke 
unanimous  vote  in  '. 
gies  were  pre-deter 
him  and  some  otht 
for  such  candidates 
terests  of  the  coun 
Gen.  Taylor.     Whc 
to  Mr.  Webster,  of 
have  honored  them* 
had  made  him  Presi 
on  my  lips,  but  it  1 
fact  in  1844,  when 
rescuing  our  Comr 
the  electoral  vote  < 
than  those  who  ha1 
probability  that  he  c 

3.  It  is  well  kmtt 
the  entire  subject  a 

sion  came  to  the  co  v  ^  t 

Administration,  and  promote  the  success  of  the  Whig  cause,  under  the  auspices  of 
Gen.  Taylor,  than  by  using  the  name  of  any  other  of  the  distinguished  men  who 
have  been  brought  before  the  public  in  this  connection.  Nevertheless,  I  have  said 
on  all  occasions  that  I  would  not,  as  a  delegate  to  the  Convention,  act  on  my  own 
private  opinions,  but  would  co-operate  with  the  other  delegates  from  Connecticut  in 
an  effort  to  obtain  such  a  result  as  we  might,  on  consultation,  deem  to  be  best. 

4.  When  the  delegation  assembled  at  Philadelphia  for  consultation,  in  advance  of 
the  deliberations  of  the   Convention,  my  opinions    favorable  to  General  Taylor, 
and  the  grounds  on  which  those  opinions  are  based,  were  fully  stated  to  my  co-dele- 
gates y  but,  at  the  same  time,  I  avowed  the  purpose  of  abiding  by  the  decision  of 


3 

my  associates.  We  then  determined  unanimously  to  vote  for  Mr.  Clay;  and  I  can 
assure  Mr.  Blunt  that  we  should  not  have  departed  from  that  determination  one 
hair,  if  other  delegates  had  been  disposed  to  co-operate  with  us,  so  as  to  give  Mr. 
Clay  a  majority  of  the  Convention  ;  in  such  case  he  would  have  been  the  nominee 
of  the  Whig  party,  and  I  would  have  exerted  myself,  as  in  1844,  to  make  him  the 
Chief  Magistrate  of  the  American  people. 

5.  On  the  first  ballot  Mr.  Clay  received  97  votes,  (fewer,  by  far,  than  I  antici- 
pated,) and  on  the  second  he  receded  to  86.     The  delegation  assembled  the  next 
morning  for  further  consultation  ;  and  knowing,  as  we  did,  that  many  delegates  who 
voted  for  Mr.  Clay  on  the  first  and  second  ballots  would  vote  for  other  candidates  on 
the  third,  and  that  therefore   his  nomination  was  unattainable,  we  decided  unani- 
mously that  each  delegate  might  thereafter  give  such  a  vote  as  he  should  be  con- 
vinced the  good  of  the  country  required.     I  then  recurred,  for  the  first  time,  to  my 
real  opinions,  and  voted  for  General  Zachary  Taylor,  and  found  myself  supported 
by  two  of  my  colleagues,  Messrs.  Stuart  and  Trumbull,  whb  acted  on  their  own 
judgment,  wholly  uninfluenced  by  me,  directly  or  indirectly.     I  presume  I  shall  not 
be  guilty  of  a  breach  of  confidence  if  I  say  that  General  Taylor  would  have  received, 
if  necessary  to  his  nomination,  (Mr.  Clay  being  out  of  the  question,)  two  more  votes 
from  *  Connecticut.     I  believe  the  same  thing  is  true  of  some  delegates  from  other 
States  who  voted  for  Mr.  Clay  to  the  last. 

6.  I  entertain  the  utmost  respect  for,  and  confidence  in,  the  Whigs  of  the  city  of 
New  York;  but  it  must  be  recollected  that  I  went  into  the  Convention  not  as  their 
agent,  but  as  the  representative  of  the  Whigs  of  Connecticut.     I  thought  myself  a 
free  man,  acting  for  the  free  Whigs  of  a  noble  State,  in  a  perfectly  free  National 
Convention,  with  no  obligations  to  Mr.  Blunt  except  those  of  courtesy  and  respect. 
In  that  character  I  did  not  deem  myself  a  mere  automaton,  but  a  reasonable  being, 
in  duty  bound  to  act  fairly   and  candidly  towards  all,  but  with  liberty  to  exer- 
cise an  honest  judgment  as  to  the  best  means  .to  be  selected  to  accomplish  an  object 
which  all  good  Whigs  desire.     I  am  supported  in  the  course  which  I  pursued  by 
conscious  rectitude;  and  through  "evil  report  and  good  report"  I  shall  pursue  "the 
even  tenor  of  my  way,"  paying  no  more  attention  to  denunciation,  from  whatever 
quarter  it  may  come,  than  I  would  to  "the  idle  wind."     I  am  not  at  all  apprehen- 
sive of  having  incurred  the  resentment,  either  of  Mr.  Clay  or  my  own  constituents. 
I  know  too  much  of  that  magnanimous  and  noble-hearted  man  to  believe  that  he 
will  harbor  a  particle  of  ill  will  towards   such  of  the  Convention  as  fearlessly  did 
what  they  believed  to  be  their  duty,  whatever  he  may  think  of  those  who  have 
"gambled"  with  his  name — of  which,  by  the  way,  I  do  not  suspect  Mr.  Blunt.     As 
to  my  constituents,  I  feel  myself  under  infinite  obligations  to  them.     I  have  re- 
ceived many  expressions  of  confidence  at  their  hands,  and  recently  one  which  nearly 
touches  my  heart.     But  I  can  assure  Mr.  B.  we  can  settle  accounts  between  our- 
selves without  his  aid  or  interference;  and  further,  that  whenever  it  shall  appear 
that  I  have  incurred  their  displeasure,  I  shall  instantly  return  into  their  hands  any 
trust  which  they  may  have  confided  to  me,  and  take  refuge  from  the  misconstructions 
and  malevolence  of  politics  in  the  duties  of  my  profession  and  the  repose  of  private 
life.     I  hope  Mr.  B.  will  excuse  me  for  intimating  that,  if  certain  Whigs  of  the  city 
of  New  York  were  less  in  the  habit  of  maligning  the  motives  and  traducing  the  con- 
duct of  the  Whigs  of  other  parts  of  the  country,  they  would  have  more  influence  in 
giving  a  direction  to  public  affairs. 

From  this  exposition,  I  think,  it  is  manifest  that  Mr.  Blunt,  "in  holding  the  mir- 
ror up  to  nature,"  has  placed  it  in  false  lights,  and  has  reflected  a  distorted  image; 
and,  in  view  of  the  facts  stated,  I  fearlessly  submit  my  course  in  the  Convention  to 
the  scrutiny  of  all  honorable  and  upright  men.  I  have  acted  openly  and  above 
board  on  all  occasions  in  reference  to  this  subject,  and  avoiding  ultraism  and  vio- 
lence, on  the  one  hand,  I  hope  my  conduct,  on  the  other,  has  been  characterized  by 
the  independence  and  firmness  which  all  should  possess  who  desire  to  be  of  any  use 
to  the  country. 

Dismissing,  then,  this  subject,  which  I  shall  not  be  surprised  to  find  regarded  as 


of  little  moment,  I  seize  the  occasion  to  give  a  brief  exposition  of  the  benefits  which 
I  conceive  will  result  to  the  country  from  the  elevation  of  General  Zachary  Taylor 
to  the  Presidency.  I  anticipate  from  such  a  consummation — 

1.  An  essential  alleviation  of  tfye  acerbity  and  violence  of  party  spirit  which  has 
been  running  to  extremes  for  many  years  past,  and  which  has  produced  nothing  but 
evil  to  the  country,  and  that  continually. 

2.  A  more  moderate  and  reasonable  action,  on  the  part  both  of  Congress  and  the 
Executive,  in  establishing  a  policy  in  reference  to  all  essential  interests,  in  which 
all  good  men,  if  not  perfectly  satisfied,  can  acquiesce.     I  wish  to  see  public  men 
disenthralled,  in  some  degree,  from  the  iron  rule  of  party,  and  placed  in  a  condition 
to  act  freely  according  to  their  own  conscientious  convictions  of  right  and  duty. 
Time  was  when  leading  men  of  the  same  party  felt  themselves  at  liberty  to  differ 
on  great  questions  of  public  policy,  but  now  the  state  of  the  case  is  widely  different, 
and  many  are  forced,  by  the  tyranny  qf  party,  into  the  support  of  measures  which 
they  cordially  disarjprove,  if  they  do  not  detest.     Relentless  proscription  awaits 
every  man  who  falters  in  the  least.     1  have,  within  the  last  few  days,  heard  an 
upright  and  truly  patriotic  Senator,  from   my  own  State,  bitterly  denounced  by  a 
leading  Democratic  member  of  the  House  of  Representatives,  merely  because  he 
will  not  go  the  whole  figure  in  supporting  all  the  wild  and  mischievous  measures  of 
the  present  Administration.     The  state  of  things,  which  has  long  existed  at  the  seat 
of  Government,  I  can  sufficiently   illustrate  by   an  anecdote:  At  the  time  the  final 
vote  was  taken  in. the  House,  at  the  first  session  of  the  last  Congress,  re-enacting 
the  Subtreasury  law,  a  highly  respectable  Democratic  member  came  across  the  Hall 
to  my  seat,  and  exclaimed,  with  an  oath,  (which  I  will  not  repeat,)  "it  is  a  shame 
that  a  law  should  be  passed  to  which  a  large  majority  of  the  House  is  opposed,"  or 
words  to  that  effect.     I  am  confident  that,  had  it  not  been  for  "the  bonds  of  party," 
the  tariff  of  M6  could  not  have  -been  passed,  though  that  of  '42  might  have  been 
essentially,  and ,  perhaps  advantageously,   modified.     lam  equally  confident  that, 
but  for  the  same  cause,  the  country  would  not  have  been  plunged  into   "an  unne- 
cessary and  unconstitutional  war  with  Mexico,"  the  past  and  present  evils  whereof 
few  yet  comprehend,  and  the  future  evils  of  which  will  only  be  taught  u.s  by  many 
years  of  bitter  experience.     But  when   moderation  shall  become  the  order  of  the 
day,  which  I  am  well  assured  will  be  inculcated  by  Gen.   Taylor,  should  he  be 
President,  by  both  precept  and  example,  a  new  spirit  will  come  over  Congress,  and 
I  trust  the  great  body  of  the  people,  and  we  shall  all  feel  that  we  have  common  insti- 
tutions to  preserve,  a  common  country  to  serve;  and,  wrhether  we  sink  or  swim, 
we  are  all  committed  to  one  common  destiny,  w'hether  for  good  or  evil. 

3.  An  administration  which  will  consecrate  all  its  faculties  to  the  preservation  of 
the  peace  of  the  country.  I  regard  this  as  an  object  of  paramount  importance.  No 
man  is  better  qualified  than  Gen.  Taylor  to  seize  with  a  firm  grasp  the  spirit  of 
war  which  unhappily  infests  the  American  people,  (the  great  besetting  sin  of  all 
republics,)  and  to  hold  it  effectually  in  check.  That  he  entertains  sentiments  of  the 
utmost  abhorrence  of  war,  and  that  he  will  be  the  resolute  friend  of  peace,  I  know. 
I  hope  I  shall  be  excused  for  presenting  here  an  extract  from  a  letter  which  I  had 
the  honor  to  receive  from  Gen.  Taylor,  dated  at  Baton  Rouge,  on  the^4th  of  March 
last: 

"  I  need  hardly  reply  to  your  concluding  inquiry  that  I  am  a  peace  man,  and  that  I  deem  a  state  of 
peace  to  be  absolutely  necessary  to  the  proper  and  healthful  action  of  our  republican  institutions.  On 
this  important  question  I  freely  confess  myself  to  be  the  unqualified  advocate  of  the  principles  so  often 
laid  down  by  the  Father  of  his  Country,  and  so  urgently  recommended  by  him  in  his  Farewell  Address 
to  the  American  people.  Indeed  I  think  I  may  safely  say  that  no  man  can  put  a  more  implicit  faifch 
than  I  do  in  the  wisdom  of  his  advice  when  he  urged  upon  us — the  propriety  of  always  standing  upon 
our  "own  soil." 

In  his  letter  to  Captain  J.  S.  Allison,  dated  April  2'2d,  General  Taylor  says: 

"  My  life  has  been  devoted  to  arms,  yet  I  look  upon  war,  at  all  times  and  under  all  circumstances, 
as  a  national  calamity  to  be  avoided,  if  compatible  with  national  honor.  ,The  principles  of  our  Gov- 
ernment, as  well  as  its  true  policy,  are  opposed  to  the  subjugation  of  other  nations,  and  the  dismem- 
berment of  other  countries  by  conquest." 


At  a  dinner  in  New  Orleans,  given  in  December  last  in  honor  of  Gen.  TAYLOR, 
3ie  responded  to  a  complimentary  sentiment  by  declaring — 

"That  the  joy  and  exultation  of  the  greatest  victories  were  always,  after  the  heat  and  exci'ement  of  the  bailie, 
wccteded  by  feelings  of  poignant  sorrow  and  pain;  and  that  ivar,  after  all,  was  a  great  calamity,  and  his  the 
gi-eatext  glory  ivho  could  terminate  it." 

General  Taylor  has  on  other  occasions  avowed  similar  sentiments;  they  do  him 
much  honor.  He  will  resist  the  lust  of  dominion  and  the  passion  for  acquisition 
which  marks  so  distinctly  the  character  of  the  American  people,  and  which  is 
fraught  with  more  peril  to  our  free  institutions,  and  the  perpetuity  of  our  glorious 
Union,  than  any  oilier  cause  whatever.  There  will  be  no  danger  of  the  annexation 
•of  either  Cuba  or  Yucatan  under  the  auspices  of  Gen.  Taylor. 

4.  Also  an  administration  of  the  strictest  impartiality,  and  of  the  most  rigid  justice, 
as  between  all  the  great  interests  of  the  country,  and  all  sections  of  the  confederacy. 
I  believe  Gen.  Taylor  to  be  entirely  above  sectional  prejudice;  and  there  are  not 
any  of  the  interests  of  the  free  States  which  I  would  not  unhesitatingly  confide  to 
his  hand.     He  has  a  head  to  comprehend,  and  a  heart  to  embrace  his  country,  and 
'his  whole  country.     Having  spent  his  whole  life  in  the  public  service,  and  on  terms 
of  cordial  and  friendly  intercourse  with  the  people  of  all  parts  of  the  Union,  he  enter- 
tains the  broadest  and  most  liberal  sentiments  of  nationality.     I  do  not  regard  him 
as  a  citizen  of  Louisiana,  but  as  a  citizen  of  the  United  States  of  America. 

5.  He  will  do  much,  if  elected,  to  put  down  the  efforts  now  making  in  various 
quarters  to  run  all  the  politics  of  the  country  into  a  mischievous  spirit  of  sectionalism. 
•If  he  shall  f>rove  to  be  the  President  I  doubt  not  he  will  be,  the  people  will  learn,  that  of 
all  the  qualifications  for  that  high  office,  that  of  citizenship,  residence,  or  domicil,  is 
the  lowest.     ],  am  more  disposed  to  look  to  the  man  himself,  to  the  qualities  of  his 
head  and  heart,  rather  than  to  the  accidents  of  birth  or  residence.     Who  would  not 
rejoice  to  have  a  succession  of  Presidents  for  the  next  five  centuries,  who  shall  ad- 
minister the  Government  after  the  fashion,  and  in  the  spirit  of  Washington,  though 
every  one  of  them  should  come  from  the  Capes  of  Florida? 

6.  Congress  will  be  restored  to  the  powers  and  prerogatives  which  the  framers  of 
the  Constitution  intended  that  body  should  exercise.     It  must  be  obvious,  on  the 
slightest  examination  of  that  instrument,  that  to  Congress  was  confided  the  power 
of  expressing  the  will  of  the  people  in  the  form  of  laws,  and  to  the  Executive  the 
•duty  only  of  executing  that  will  when  ascertained  by  Congress.     But  within  the 
last  few  years  there  has  been  in  progress  a  rapid  concentration  of  all  power  in  the 
hands  of  the  Executive.     The   President  has  become   everything  and   Congress 
nothing.     An  irresponsible  body,  called  a  convention,  and  generally  a  small  com- 
mittee of  such  body  assembled  in  the  upper  room  of  some  tavern,  have  arrogated 
the  right  of  settling  everything  in  advance,  and  of  binding  both  Congress  and  the 
Executive.     The  latter  has  become  the   agent  of  a  debased  and  grovelling  parti- 
.zanship  to  overrule  the  former,  either  through  the  instrumentality  of  the  veto,  or 
by   a  corrupt  exercise  of  patronage.     4b  the  correction  of  the  enormous  evils  of 
"the  one  man  power,'7  General  Taylor  stands  distinctly  pledged.     The  moment 
this  is  clone,  the  great  questions  of  public  policy  are  taken  out  of  the  Presidential 
canvass  and  are  carried  into  the  Congressional  districts.     If  the  people  desire  a  pro- 
tective tariff,  the  improvement  of  our  harbors  and  rivers,  or  any  policy  in  regard  to 
our  territories,  they  will  elect  members  of  Congress  accordingly.     This  will  relieve 
the  legislation  of  the  country  from  the  malign  influence  of  party,  and  will  be  likely 
to  give  much  greater  stability  to  such  measures  as  have  a  favorable  bearing  on  the 
important  interests  of  the  country,  than  has  obtained  for  many  years  past. 

7.  The  influence  of  the  name  and  character  of  General  Taylor  will  be  quite  cer- 
tain to  give  us  a  Congress  whose  views  of  public  policy  will  accord  with  those  of 
the  Whig  party.     In  this  respect  he  can  do  more  for  the  country  than  any  man  now 
living.     Few  of  those  who  undertake  to  pronounce  so  peremptorily  on  the  question 
*>f  the  Presidency  have  given  this  subject  any  consideration  whatever.     While  I  am 
free  to  admit  that  Mr.  Clay  ought  to  have  been  elected  President  long  ago,  yet  I 


6 

think  it  certain  that  if  he  could  now  be  brought  successfully  into  the  field,  he  would 
have  the  two  Houses  of  Congress  to  thwart  and  embarrass  him  during  the  whole  of 
his  Presidential  term.  Any  man  who  will  consider  the  condition  of  the  representa- 
tion in  both  branches  of  Congress  from  the  northwestern,  western,  and  southwestern 
States,  must  admit  the  truth  of  this  remark.  I  want  a  Whig  President,  a  Whig 
Senate,  and  a  Whig  House  of  Representatives,  and  General  Taylor  being  strong  in 
those  parts  of  the  Union  where  we  are  weak,  will  favor  in  a  high  degree  so  desirable 
a  consummation. 

8.  In  short,  I  believe  that  all  departments  of  the  Government  will  become  conser- 
vative under  the  auspices  of  General  Taylor.  That  he  will  administer  the  Execu- 
tive department  in  that  spirit  no  man  caii  doubt;  and  this  makes  him  a  good  Whig 
enough  for  me.  He  will  take  high  conservative  ground  on  all  questions  appertain- 
ing to  our  foreign  relations.  He  will  dispense  the  patronage  of  the  Government  in 
a  spirit  of  moderation.  He  will  be  particularly  cautious  to  see  that  justice  is  done 
to  all  sections  in  this  regard.  And  as  to  questions  appertaining  to  our  domestic 
policy,  he  will  follow  the  example  of  the  earlier  Presidents,  and  will  throw  them 
into  Congress.  What  more  can  be  desired  by  the  just,  moderate,  and  patriotic  of 
the  Whig  party? 

I  doubt  whether  there  has  ever  been  assembled  in  this  country  a  Convention,  the 
proceedings  of  which  were  more  just  and  fair,  and  in  which  there  was  less  of 
management  and  intrigue,  than  that  which  recently  assembled  at  Philadelphia.  It 
was  refreshing  to  meet  from  the  farthest  extremity  of  our  wide-spread  Union  good 
and  true-hearted  Whigs,  wljo  had  incurred  the  fatigue  and  the  expense  of  a  journey 
of  many  hundred  miles  to  participate  in  our  consultations.  All  seemed  to  be  ac- 
tuated by  the  best  spirit,  and  anxious  for  the  success  of  the  common  cause.  It  is 
true  there  were  strong  differences  of  opinion  among  the  members,  honestly  enter- 
tained and  respectfully  and  kindly  expressed,  and  these  differences  were  submitted 
to  the  proper  arbiter  voluntarily  constituted  and  pre-eminently  worthy  ot  the  confi- 
dence of  all.  The  result  was  the  nomination  of  General  Zachary  Taylor  as  the 
Whig  candidate  for  the  Presidency,  and  by  the  blessing  of  God  he  will  be  elected, 
whoever  may  bolt  the  track. 

I  accord  fully  in  the  opinions  recently  expressed  by  the  Hon.  C.  C.  Cambreleng 
in  a  political  assembly,  as  follows: 

"  The  great  object  of  the  wise  men  of  the  capital,  for  three  years  past,  has  been  to  make  a  Presi- 
dent. They  have  labored  day  and  night,  zealously  and  assiduously,  and  have  succeeded  admirably 
and  triumphantly.  They  have  most  effectually  accomplished  their  object ;  they  have,  by  their  own 
acts,  made  a  President  of  the  United  States,  but  it  happens  not  to  be  the  man,  nor  either  of  the  men, 
they  intended.  It  is  neither  the  President  nor  any  of  his  Cabinet,  nor  is  it  the  conservative  nominee 
of  the  Baltimore  Convention.  From  the  first  roll  of  the  drum  at  Palo  Alto,  through  all  our  splendid 
victories,  to  the  final  and  glorious  conquest  of  Mexico,  the  President  and  his  Cabinet  have  labored, 
zealously  and  successfully  labored,  to  make  Zachary  Taylor  President  of  the  United  States.  It  matters 
not  whether  he  is  from  the  North,  the  South,  the  East,  or  the  West,  nor  how  he  gets  into  the  field. 
Whether  supported  by  volunteers  or  regulars,  once  in  the  field,  the  man  who  has  the  heart  of  the  nation 
with  him  is  irresistible,  and  must  inevitably  triumph."  & 

And  why  should  it  not  be  so,  when  the  real  issue  to  which  we  are  brought 
is  whether  Lewis  Cass  or  Zachary  Taylor  shall  be  the  next  President  of  the 
United  States?  I  desire  to  say  nothing  disrespectful  of  General  Cass,  but  his 
career  in  Congress,  particularly  on  the  Oregon  question  and  the  ]\Jexican  war? 
are  too  well  known  to  render  mistake  possible  as  to  what  will  be  the  tendency 
of  an  administration  of  which  he  shall  be  thew  chief.  Unfortunately  he  is  one  of 
those  who  think  they  can  find  an  inexhaustible  fund  or  source  of  popularity  in  the 
belligerent  propensities  of  the  American  People.  War!  war!  has  been  incessantly 
on  his  lips  for  years  past.  I  trust  that  Whigs  everywhere  will  ponder  well  on  the 
consequences  which  resulted  from  third  party  organization  in  1844.  Did  it  not 
elect  Mr.  Polk,  overthrow  the  Tariff  of  '42,  re-enact  an  odious  and  oppressive  Sub- 
treasury,  annex  Texas,  involve  us  in  the  war  with  Mexico,  commit  twenty-five 
thousand  American  citizens  to  a  premature  grave,  and  squander  over  one  hundred 
and  fifty  millions  of  the  public  treasure?  Does  not  a  large  share  of  the  responsibility 


of  all  these  evils  lie  at  the  door  of  those  who,  by  a  third  party  movement,  defeated 
Mr.  Clay  ?  Whoever  takes  a  similar  course  now,  will  incur  dread  responsibilities. 
What  if  war  again  should  follow  from  it — the  annexation  of  Cuba  or  indefinite  ex- 
tension on  the  side  of  Mexico?  I  cannot  believe  that  any  such  suicidal  policy  will 
be  pursued.  No!  the  hour  of  retribution  has  come,  and  those  who  have  been 
gambling  with  war  in  reference  to  the  Presidency,  will  find  themselves  put  down  by 
a  man  who  by  his  noble  conduct  and  brilliant  exploits  has  raised  himself  to  the  level 
of  the  most  eminent  commanders  of  modern  times.  Let  us  now  elect  Gen.  Taylor 
President,  and  aspirants  for  that  high  office  will  be  little  inclined  hereafter  "to  make 
of  war  and  its  bloody  front  a  game  of  politics." 

I  declare  my  utmost  confidence  in  Gen.  Taylor.  I  feel  that  I  have  a  thorough 
insight  into  his  principles  and  his  character.  As  he  is  an  honest  man,  I  confide  in 
him;  as  he  is  a  moderate  man,  I  respect  him;  as  he  is  a  humane  man,  I  admire 
him;  as  he  is  a  man  of  unsurpassed  bravery,  I  honor  him;  as  he  is  distinguished 
for  good  sense  and  sound  discretion,  I  think  he  will  make  a  safe  President;  as  a 
high  sense  of  justice  has  ever  characterized  his  conduct,  I  am  willing  to  trust  him 
with  the  rights  and  interests  of  all  parts  of  the  country,  and  particularly  those  of  the 
free  States;  as  he  has  ever  been  remarkable  for  firmness  and  decision  of  char- 
acter— "asks  no  favors  and  fears  no  responsibility" — I  believe  he  will,  with  a 
steady  hand,  guide  the  country  safely  through  all  the  perils  which  may  environ 
it;  as  he  possesses  the  utmost  purity  and  excellence  of  character,  I  shall  take 
pleasure  in  seeing  him  at  the  head  of  public  affairs;  as  he  is  truly  republican  in 
his  habits  and  manners,  being  one  of  the  people,  and  sympathizing  thoroughly 
with  the  masses,  I  think  there  is  a  fitness  in  making  him  the  chief  magistrate 
of  those  same  masses,  of  whom  the  humblest  can  e^xcJaim  with  truth  "he  is  one  of 
us!" — and  as  he  is  a  good,  sound,  conservative,  and  reliable  Whig,  abominating  war 
and  contemning  meanness,  fraud,  chicanery,  and  trickery,  who  will  put  far  from 
him  all  evil-doers,  political  or  otherwise,  I  am  for  him  from  the  beginning  to  the 
end  of  the  chapter.  I  consecrate  my  hand  and  my  heart  to  the  good  old  cause  as 
represented  by  Zachary  Taylor,  and  will  do  all  within  the  range  of  my  feeble  abili- 
ties to  make  him  the  next  President  of  the  United  States. 

TRUMAN  SMITH. 

Washington,  June  2(M,  1848. 


APPENDIX. 


Since  penning  the  foregoing"  remarks  I  have  received  the  following  communica- 
tion from  his  Excellency  Clarke  Bissell,  the  Governor  of  our  State,  his  Honor 
Charles  J.  McCurdy,  the  Lieutenant  Governor  thereof,  Hon.  L.  F.  S.*  Foster,. 
Speaker  of  the  House  of  Representatives,  and  John  B.  Robertson,  Esq.,  Secretary 
of  the  Commonwealth.  I  need  not  say  that  the  contents  have  afforded  me  unalloyed 
satisfaction  : 


NEW  HAVEN,  June  19%  18-iS. 

Hon.  TRUMAN  SMITH- 

DEAR  SIR:  As  there  appears  a  disposition  in  certain  quarters  to  impugn  your 
course  as  one  of  the  delegates  of  Connecticut  at  the  Philadelphia  Convention,  we 
deem  it  a  duty,  and  feel  it  a  pleasure,  to  express  to  you  our  views  on  the  subject. 

Mr.  Clay  was,  undoubtedly,  the  first  choice  of  a  large  proportion  of  the  Whigs  of 
Connecticut;  and  a  class  of  them,  good  men  and  true,  and  faithful  to  the  end,  were., 
to  the  last,  earnest  and  anxious  for  his  nomination,  and  willing  to  abide  the  chance 
of  its  success.  But  another  portion,  perhaps  as  numerous,  as  respectable,  and  as 
judicious,  with  the  same  attachment  to  the  person  and  principles  of  their  nqble 
leader,  had  become,  at  the  time  of  the  nomination,  unwilling  to  commit  the  cause 
to  the  hazard  of  so  doubtful  an  experiment.  They  were  also  afraid  that,  even  if  the 
nomination  was  successful,  it  would  be  but  a  barren  victory,  not  producing  that  effect 
upon  the  Congressional  elections  which  is  necessary  to  ensure  a  practi.'ni  and  sub- 
stantial triumph.  This  state  of  feeling  and  opinion  at  home,  the  first  wi-h  and  the 
•ultimate  doubt,  was  fairly  reflected  by  the  course  of  our  delegation  at  Philadelphia.. 
They  were  under  no  instructions,  (advice  enough  they  unquestionably  had,)  but  each 
member  was  expected  and  desired  to  exercise  his  own  discretion  in.  view  of  all  the 
circumstances  which  should  be  developed  at  the  Convention;  atid  their  friends  hero 
were  willing  to  trust  the  entire  subject  to  the  prudence  and  wisdom  of  their  deci- 
sion. As  far  as  we  know,  their  course  is  entirely  satisfactory  to  the  great  ma>s  c.f 
the  Whiles  of  Connecticut.  The  nominations  are  responded  to  with  enthusiasm., 
and  will  receive  at  least  as  large  a  majority-  as  any  which  could  have  been  made. 

With  much  i  expect,  -we  are  vour  friends, 

C.  BISSELL, 
CHAS.  J.  McCURDY, 
L.  F.  S.  FOSTER, 
JOHN  B.  ROBERTSON. 


